Labor Day Weekend is just a few days away. (We kick it off Friday morning).

For the last trip to the beach, I figured I’d put my special touch on a few pieces I purchased earlier in the summer.

The Bikini – thank goodness they started selling separates. If you’re like me and fuller on the top, you know the challenges I face. I never and I mean NEVER wear a bandeau top. I like full coverage and support. Neither of which you get from that type of top. Especially if you’re over a c cup (in my opinion). That brings me to my DIY project. One day during my lunch break, a friend & I spotted a beautiful cobalt blue bandeau bikini in the window of a no-name store. I thought about it all day. I get home that evening, there’s another JCrew catalog waiting for me & it got my creative juices flowing. (Here is the JCrewBikini that inspired me). I went back to the store, the very next day and purchased the set in XL. Yes, cheap nameless stores don’t sell separates.

The Hat – though Eugenie Kim is a fellow Dartmouth College grad & I love her designs, I just couldn’t bring myself to pay $435.00 for a hat. But once again, I sat down at my sewing machine table & got busy. This is the Super Sun Hat that inspired me.

The top in it’s original design. I cut the self-tie straps off the bikini bottom to make straps on the top. I cut the center straps off, knotted & secured the center for natural ruching. Instead of copying Eugenie’s design, I came up with my own.